


Some Kind of Beginning

by Flynntervention



Category: Tales of Vesperia
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Yuri Lowell in love, a challenge to solve!, flynn Scifo is an angel baby, silliness and love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-07
Updated: 2018-01-07
Packaged: 2019-03-01 18:26:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,226
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13300680
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flynntervention/pseuds/Flynntervention
Summary: Shit, Yuri thought in the midst of smoothing a cloth over the silvery length of Second Star, strokes long and careful, fluid like his swordsmanship. He paused at the sharp tip, thumb poised, testing the point. I'm in love with Flynn.





	Some Kind of Beginning

__

  
Shit, Yuri thought in the midst of smoothing a cloth over the silvery length of Second Star, strokes long and careful, fluid like his swordsmanship. He paused at the sharp tip, thumb poised, testing the point. I'm in love with Flynn.   
This posed an awkward conundrum. Yuri Lowell was not the romantic sort. There would be no chance of a grand gesture and even less chance of a romantic confession and, sharp as Flynn was, it was unlikely he was going to just figure out for himself how Yuri felt. Pissed off, annoyed, sad; those feelings were easily identified and easily dealt with, but love? Love was nestled in a category of its own, safe and warm and secret.   
He couldn't very well just blurt it all out, no. Flynn would scoff and laugh, mistake his sincerity for teasing, call him a fool and forget the whole sorry confession. That wouldn't do at all. This required every measure of delicacy Yuri could muster. Unfortunately, delicacy was not one of his strong points. In fact, one might say delicacy was perhaps at the very bottom of the list of Yuri's strong points; a weak point in fact. The weakest.   
He sighed, sucking a bead of blood from the tip of his thumb and setting his newly shined sword amongst the rest of his weapons, clean, ordered and ready for action.

Man enough to admit this was a situation he couldn't handle alone, he decided the only sensible thing to do was to consult his next most trusted friend and family member.

"Hanks," he said after heading downstairs to the Comet, sidling into the kitchen like he owned the place and plonking himself on the edge of a stool, rocking precariously on two legs. Hanks glanced over his shoulder, immediately reprimanding him for ruining his furniture. "Hanks, I need some advice," he said, all four weathered and curving stool legs now firmly on the floor. He nicked a slice of walnut cake from the plate beside him, licking his fingers clean before he spoke again. Hanks continued working as though he hadn't heard him, slicing bacon rashers into strips and piling them on the sideboard ready for frying.

"I need to confess something to someone," Yuri began, simple and subtle all at once. The fewer people that knew who Yuri was desperately - he wasn't sure why his mind decided to add that particular adverb in; it made his cheeks hot - in love with, the better. "And I--"

He paused when a meat cleaver was waved in front of him, Hanks' eyes dark with rage. "You better not be about to tell me you've broken the law again, Yuri Lowell," he said, voice low and menacing in ways a man of his age and stature shouldn’t be able to manage. "Because so help me, boy, I will knock you into next year."

Yuri would have laughed had the glinting edge of the blade not been so near to his throat. His life flashed before his eyes, along with all the mabo curries he would never get to sample, all the recipes he would never get to test, all the fights he’d never get to win. "Nothing like that," he answered, carefully easing Hanks' hand, and the cleaver, away from his delicate body parts. Hanks eyed him, suspicious. "Honestly. No law-breaking this time. I need to tell someone something very important. Life-changing important."

Hanks placed the meat cleaver on the side. Yuri nudged it out of reach. "Something life-changing important, hm?" Hanks said, tapping his chin thoughtfully. "Why can't you just come out with it? You're normally very direct about the things that matter to you, so why not just be upfront and honest? What's the worst that's going to happen?"

While Yuri didn't believe Flynn would ridicule him for his feelings, there was always the slight possibility. He didn't want to mess this up. He wanted to do it right. He might not have been a knight in name, but he was sure as Hell a knight in nature, as was Flynn. There were ways of doing things, right ways and wrong ways and this time Yuri was going to do something the right way, the Flynn way, the long-term-thinking before-acting-and-being-sensible way.

"They need to know I'm sincere," Yuri answered finally. "It's one of those 'actions speak louder than words' situations. How do I show how I.." He coughed into his fist, adjusting his position on the stool. "How I feel. How do I show how I feel?"

A few moments of silence passed. Hanks' brow crinkled. "Yuri, are you talking about confessing your love for someone?"

Stealthy as anything, Hanks wife materialised beside him, eyes wide and wet with tears. "Yuri Lowell is in love?!" she cried, cheeks red. Picking up his hands, she pulled them to her bosom, near enough swooning at his feet. "Oh my! Our Yuri has finally found someone to spend his life with! Is it that lovely Estelle? Or Judy! Oh, she's a fine one, that Judy is. She'd keep you in line, young man, oh yes. Hmm, yes, perfect. Judy would make an excellent wife fo--"

"Maud," Hanks said stiffly, hand on her shoulder. "Let the boy be. If he doesn't want to tell us just yet, then that is absolutely fine. But it's our job to help him where we can.”

Maud paused, dropping Yuri’s hands, patting them dotingly. “Yes. Yes, you’re right, absolutely,” she said softly, smiling, barely containing her excitement. Pulling up the stool beside him, she sat, folding her hands in her lap. “So, where do we start?”

\--

Yuri didn’t believe taking romantic advice from a man that had only managed to successfully woo one woman in his entire life was really the best of moves, but if he didn’t take Hanks’ advice, that only left Raven and there was a long list of reasons not to venture too deeply down that rabbit hole. Along with Maud’s help, Hanks had written what could only be described as an instruction manual-come-guidance book about confessing romantic feelings and intentions without making an enormous prick of oneself. Yuri wasn’t absolutely convinced of the latter.

Fifteen pages memorised, categorised and practised, Yuri was now making his way up to the castle to find his intended. He caught sight of Flynn on his way back from the dining hall, calling out to him to catch his attention. “Yuri!” Flynn exclaimed, smiling broadly. “What brings you up here at this time of night? You just missed dinner.”

“Was in the area, thought I’d drop in and see if you were busy,” Yuri answered, falling into step beside him, hands behind his back..

“Well, I’m just about to go through reports, but you can walk me back to my room,” Flynn answered. He was pleased to see him judging by his lingering smile.

Alright; point one: Compliments.

“You, uh,” Yuri began, looking him over, trying to pinpoint something worth complimenting. Flynn looked the same as he always did, suited and booted, near enough perfect and pristine. It was hard to pick something when he looked exactly the same every day.. “Your hair looks...and...uh...”

Flynn looked over at him, perplexed. “My hair looks...?”

“Less... messy... than usual.”

Close enough.

“Oh,” Flynn said, “does it? I haven’t done anything to it. Doesn’t seem like there’s much point. I can’t tame it.”

That was a compliment, right? Yuri wasn’t sure, so he tried again. “No, I mean...it looks good. Whatever’s different. Looks...good.”

““Thanks, Yuri!” Flynn’s smile was nearly blinding. It filled Yuri’s heart to the brim with warmth.

They reached the door to Flynn’s room. Yuri quickened his step briefly, reaching for the door knob. “Let me get that.”

Point two: good manners.

“Uh...okay?” Flynn said, perplexed again. He stepped inside when Yuri opened the door, casting a wary glance his way. “Thanks?”

Yuri nodded, closing the door behind him. Looking around the room, he rocked on his heels, ponderous as Flynn rid himself of his armour, hanging it carefully on the stand beside his wardrobe.

Point three: ...what was point three? Kiss his hand? No, too soon for that. Offer to carry something? Damn, he should have offered to carry his sword on the way... Ah!

Point three: always pull the chair out.

So Yuri did, gesturing to it. “Sit. I’ll get you a drink.” He was jumping ahead to point five, but he didn’t suppose that mattered too much. Flynn sat, albeit hesitantly, watching Yuri flit around the room grabbing a glass and a bottle of brandy. A moment later it was sat in front of him, Yuri hovering by the chair.

“Uh, Yuri...”

“Are you tense? Let me massage your ba--”

“Yuri, stop,” Flynn said, pushing his hands away when they reached for his shoulders. “What’s gotten into you?”

“What do you mean?”

Flynn sighed, shaking his head. “I don’t need a servant. I’ve never needed one. Sit down.” He pushed the chair opposite out. “I hope you didn’t come all this way to give me weird compliments and a back massage. What is this, some kind of joke?”

Yuri sat, almost insulted. Back to the drawing board.  
\--

“Gifts?” Yuri said, eyeing the arrangement spread in front of him on the table in the living room, gloves, handkerchiefs, earrings, brooches, hair pins, an ornate mirror accompanied by a rather elegant (Yuri assumed that was what elegant looked like) hair brush and comb combination. Of course, these weren’t gifts generally given to men in this world, knights no less, so the elegance of a brush and comb really wasn’t his main area of concern. Casting a withering look Hanks’ way, Yuri picked up one of the books on the table, turning it over in his hands. “I’m not sure any these are quite right...”

Maud made a sound of understanding, hurrying back to her room and returning with more trinkets. Yuri smiled apologetically as she presented them one by one, losing hope each time Yuri shook his head. “As much as I appreciate all this, I really can’t take your possessions from you. You’ve given me some great ideas, though.”

A lie. A big fat lie. He was as clueless as he’d been an hour ago. “Okay,” Hanks interrupted. “Why don’t you tell us a little bit about them. That might give us a better idea.”

Yuri pondered this. What words best described Flynn Scifo? Commanding, strong, dedicated; kind, understanding, patient. “Bad tempered,” Yuri laughed, hand on his hip. “But inspirational. A really good person. Almost too good. Too good for me.” He grinned, only half joking. Hanks and Maud were both smiling, Hanks with a little twinkle in his eye.

“I think I’m getting a clearer picture, now,” he said, turning to his wife. “We need to think a little deeper than simple trinkets. This is the person Yuri, our Yuri, loves! It needs to be something extra special, something unique. Isn’t that right, Yuri?”

“Exactly,” Yuri answered, smiling.

\--

It was perfect, Yuri thought, a medium sized, plain box tucked under his arm. There was a bounce in his step as he made his way to the castle, positive about the choice he’d made this time. Flynn was going to love it. He’d flush and gush and tell Yuri how wonderful it was and how grateful he was and he would realise the feelings he had for him went beyond the bonds of friendship without Yuri having to use the actual words and make himself look like a great, sappy idiot with the emotional maturity of a lovesick fifteen year old boy.

That would be an end to the whole problem.

Flynn was in his study, leafing through a pile of documents. He was pleased to see Yuri again, albeit surprised when he came through the door instead of the window. When his eyes fell to the box now planted on his desk, he smiled, gesturing with his quill. “What’s this? Trying to feed me up again?” he said, laughing. “You’re not going to offer me a back massage again, are you?”

Yuri ignored that, nudging the box closer, barely able to keep the smile off his face. “Open it,” he insisted, eager to see Flynn’s expression. “It’s a present.”

Flynn’s smile soured. “A present? The last ‘present’,” he made air quotes with his fingers, “you gave me was itching powder and I didn’t sleep for three days. I don’t think I like your brand of gifts, Yuri.”

Chuckling, Yuri pulled open the box, dropping a smaller blue box in his hands. “I promise you, it’s not a prank this time,” he said. “You’ll like this one, I’m sure of it.”

Not entirely convinced, Flynn unwrapped the box and opened it slowly, wary. When nothing sprang out to assail him or poison him or otherwise do him some manner of harm, he peered inside, discovering a satin lining and an intricate gauntlet branded with a roaring lion, ‘FS’ engraved into pristine, shining, white gold. Yuri’s grin grew when he saw the surprise on Flynn’s face, lifting it from the box to examine it closer. “Did I forget my birthday again...?” he asked softly, turning it this way and that, upside down and sideways, in awe. “Yuri, you must’ve read my mind. I’ve been looking for a new gauntlet. But...I can’t take this from you...”

“The hell you can’t,” Yuri said, plucking the gauntlet from his fingers and holding it out. “Try it on. It’s been specially made just for you.”

Flynn slid his hand inside. A moment later his shoulders sank. “It’s uh....it’s too small...for my hand...”

Yuri paled. “You’re kidding,” he said, gripping the edges and yanking it forward. Flynn winced. “It’s not too small. It can’t be too small. Did you put weight on again?”

“Ow -- I most certainly did not!” Flynn cried, pulling his hand free. “I’m sorry, Yuri. It really was very thoughtful. It must have been expensive. Maybe you can return it or sell it...”

Dammit. This hadn’t gone at all to plan.

\--

“It didn’t fit?” Maud said, astonished. She was looking over the gauntlet for herself, incredulous. Having been excited to discover all the juicy details (she was far too keen to know if there had been any kissing), Maud had accosted Yuri the moment he returned, even though he had been attempting to sneak up the stairs to his room and lick his figurative wounds in peace until he was mentally prepared to move to Plan C. “How can it not have fit?” She slid it onto her own hand. It promptly slid free again when she dropped her arm. “It’s enormous! Yuri, what kind of woman have you fallen for? She isn’t wooed by compliments or sweet gestures and she has hands the size of a mans!”

“Never mind that,” Hanks said. “We need to decide what we’re going to do next. Time is of the essence.”

Maud sighed sadly, placing the gauntlet back in the box. “What does your lady like to eat? Perhaps you could make them something delicious to eat.”

“That’s an idea,” Hanks agreed. “Anyone would be wooed by your culinary skills, Yuri.”

Yuri nodded. “That might work,” he began, leaning against an old cupboard, arms folded. “I’ve cooked a lot for them before though, so it’s gonna’ have to be something special this time.”

“What do they like to eat?” Hanks asked, sitting at the table and pulling some parchment over, dipping a quill into ink and dotting the corners.

“Anything with a lot of meat in it. Doesn’t like fish, though.”

“Oh, like Flynn?” Maud said, looking over Hanks’ shoulder as he scribbled. “Oh! Maybe you can ask Flynn what he thinks? He’s a knight, after all! Chivalry is in his nature and he was always so charming with the girls, here.”

Yuri smiled slowly. “Yeah, maybe I can. He might have a few ideas.”

Hanks coughed. “You could always make all of their favourites and present them this evening, along with a nice bottle of wine, courtesy of the Comet.”

Yuri nodded. “I’ll get started!”

\--

Flynn was keeping him waiting. According to Sodia, who was sitting opposite and casting violent looks his way while she waited for her commanding officer to return so she could unload reports and documents for signing, Flynn had been attending meetings all day and was running late.

“He’s too busy to see you today, Lowell,” she said stiffly. “You might as well leave whatever you’ve brought and go home. I’ll make sure he gets it.”

“I bet you will,” Yuri answered, holding the box closer. “But I can wait. Flynn can spare me a few minutes at least.”

Sodia pursed her lips, fingers flexing. “He has spared enough minutes for you. He cannot spare any more, least of all for a ruffian like you.”

“You know,” Yuri said, sighing dramatically, “it’s funny but, whenever you’re around, I start getting this pain in my stomach, almost like someone stabbed me once....”

“Who stabbed you?!”

Both Sodia and Yuri jumped. Flynn was standing in the doorway to the council meeting room. He looked wild and tired and worried all at once, hair in greater disarray than usual. Yuri’s heart gambolled; he strode up to him with purpose, smiling broadly. “No one recently,” he answered. “I was just telling your second-in-command about how my scars hurt from time to time.I’ve made some dinner for you. Are you done for the day? I’ve got wine, too.”

Flynn quirked an eyebrow. “Wine? Since when do you drink wine? Since when do you bring me dinner?”

Yuri resisted the urge to snap ‘do you want it or not?’ and retained his smile, balanced and patient. “You like wine, don’t you?”

Flynn seemed pleased with that answer, cheeks pink. “Yes, I do. Thank you, Yuri,” he said softly. “Why don’t we go to my room? We can sit on the balcony and enjoy the evening sun.”

Yuri grinned as Flynn led the way. He didn’t resist the urge to toss Sodia a look of triumph upon his departure.

Fate was doing Yuri a service this evening. He’d brought the food and the weather had brought the ambience. This was definitely going to work.

\--

This was not working as Yuri had anticipated. Yes, Flynn had enjoyed dinner - more than enjoyed if the sounds he was making were anything at all to go by (sounds that shot straight to Yuri’s nether regions), his cheeks wine-red. He was telling Yuri about rebels in the west and underground criminal organisations and all the things he was worried about. Yuri listened patiently, pleased to see some of the stress drain from his features the more of his concerns he shared. By the end of dinner Flynn looked exhausted but happy, the way he often did after unloading his troubles to his generous best friend. That would always take priority as far as Yuri was concerned.

As he started to clear away, Flynn yawned noisily, a moment later looking somewhat sheepish. "Yuri, I'm sorry, that was so rude of me," he said, smile dozy. "You brought me this lovely dinner and I repay you by complaining and yawning. I promise next time we get chance to eat dinner together, I'll be far more on the ball, as it were."

Yuri only smiled, helping him tidy away plates ready for the servants to collect. Everything was left on a trolley outside, neatly arranged by Flynn. “So, uh...” he said, closing the door softly. “Thanks for dinner, Yuri. It was really good.”

Yuri nodded, a little dejected. Sloping over Flynn’s lounger, he sighed wearily, wondering what he could possibly do now to help Flynn to figure out his feelings. Flynn sank beside him, bare of armour. Yuri forgot sometimes how small Flynn looked without it, how unassuming and approachable he seemed, how like the determined teenager he once was.

They were both men now, convictions and hearts strong like wolves; settled into their positions in life, at ease with themselves and familiar with each other. It was rare they got to see one another as often as they had this week and for that Yuri was grateful. He had a feeling Flynn was too, reclined and relaxed beside him dressed only in his underclothes. “Sometimes it feels good just to...do nothing,” Flynn said, head lolling sideways so he could see him. “Know what I mean?”

“What’s this? Flynn Scifo getting lazy?” Yuri teased, knocking their knees. “Next you’ll be getting up at noon and taking naps in the evening.”

Flynn scoffed. “Highly unlikely,” he said, smiling warmly. “But it’s nice to take a break, even if it’s only a few hours. Especially with you.”

Yuri considered that. “Don’t I usually distract, trouble and infuriate you...?”

“Yes, but I love you anyway.”

Yuri opened his mouth to retort. He sat up straight instead. “You what?”

“I love you anyway.”

“You what?”

Flynn laughed. “I guess I’m being the impatient one this time,” he said, sitting up, back straight. “Yuri, I know what you’ve been trying to do. I’m flattered and quite touched, actually. Who knew you could be so cute.”

Was this going where he thought it was going because this definitely was not what Yuri had planned. This was possibly the opposite. Flynn’s expression was open, honest. Yuri couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen him so damn....chilled out. “I have absolutely no clue what you’re on about,” Yuri answered, partly true and partly denying the obvious truth of the matter. He wondered if it was too late to escape out the window.

“All this....pleasantness. The gifts, the kind words...well, kind coming from you... dinner,” Flynn said, softening. He grazed fingertips over Yuri’s knee. Yuri jerked away in surprise. “This was all your way of trying to tell me you love me. I think you forget sometimes how well I know you.”

Yuri’s cheeks exploded with colour. “I...it...that’s not...” he stammered, all the excuses for his extraordinarily soppy behaviour tripping over each other on his throat and landing in an untidy heap on his tongue.

“I don’t understand why you couldn’t just tell me outright. It would have saved you a lot of trouble.”

“Well I didn’t know how you felt, did I!?”

Flynn sniggered. “Yuri, I know you’re slow at times, but did you honestly never realise how I felt about you?” he said, amused. “I’ve been waiting for you to twig for a long time now.”

Yuri felt suitably embarrassed and dimwitted. No, mortified. Mortified that he’d gone to all this effort to be subtle and, dare he say it, romantic, and Flynn knew the whole damn time! “Why didn’t you say anything?!” he cried, flustered. “I had no idea! You could have said!”

“So could you.”

“But you knew how I felt! You should have said something!”

“And have you tease me for the rest of my life for being a romantic idiot? Nope. This time I wanted it to be you putting his feelings out there. You didn’t disappoint though. Congratulations.”

“Don’t you fucking patronise me.”

Flynn laughed loudly. “Well, you got what you wanted - this is the least romantic confession I’ve ever heard!”

“Fuck you.”

“Please do.”

“I-- what?”

Soft fingers gripped his, squeezing. Eyes flickering between their joined hands and Flynn’s face, Yuri wet his lips quickly, heart suddenly so loud in his chest he couldn’t think. He hadn’t thought this far ahead. In all of his planning, his mind had neglected to mention that imperative part in a love confession - roundabout and long-winded as it was - that imperative part involving kissing and an inevitable consummation. It wasn’t that he hadn’t kissed before - honestly, Yuri Lowell had been quite renowned for his kissing prowess in his teenhood - but this was different. This was Flynn. The stakes were higher. The space between the posts was narrower. If it all went horribly, horribly wrong, Yuri wasn’t absolutely sure he was going to get over it. And the teasing! Heaven above, the teasin--

Apparently Flynn had become adept at catching Yuri off guard, pressing their lips together briefly, teasingly, a promise of more to come. “Stop thinking so much and kiss me back already, Lowell. I’ve had to wait long enough already,” he murmured, voice delicious and dark. “Or have you forgotten how to kiss?”

Yuri growled, sinking against his lips again and kissing Flynn for all he was worth. “You bastard,” he whispered, barely a centimetre away. Flynn chuckled, thumb brushing the curve of his jaw.

“I know. I love you.”

Yuri grumbled. “I’m not saying it back.”

“You don’t need to,” Flynn said softly, serious. Yuri supposed he’d never needed to hear it to know it was true, Flynn kissing him a third time, slow and searching. Yuri savoured it, noting every last detail of it from the push of his tongue down to the flex of muscle in his neck. “Just one request though,” Flynn continued, lips now wet and red and tantalizing. “All this present buying and dinner making... please stop. It’s weird and far too nice for you.”

Yuri grinned, leaning in again, breath hot and eyes excited. That he could definitely do. There were plenty of more satisfying ways for Yuri Lowell to show his love.


End file.
